


Tea, Biscuits, and Precariously Arranged Items

by amaresu



Category: St Trinian's (2007 2009)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Magic, Gen, Little Magic Shop That Randomly Appears and Disappears
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-12-18
Updated: 2017-12-18
Packaged: 2019-02-16 09:20:03
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,613
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13051095
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/amaresu/pseuds/amaresu
Summary: Annabelle works hard to make her shops as uninviting as possible.  Somehow that doesn't stop Chelsea Parker anymore than the CLOSED sign on the door.





	Tea, Biscuits, and Precariously Arranged Items

**Author's Note:**

  * For [katewonder](https://archiveofourown.org/users/katewonder/gifts).



> Probably not the AU you were looking for, but hopefully one you can be happy about.

“Fuck off! We're closed!” Annabelle yelled out as the bells on the door to the shop jangled. She sighed as the door pushed open all the way and someone entered. She couldn't see much beyond some blonde hair from where she was sitting, but clearly today she was being ignored. “There's a sign!”

“Good thing I'm not here to buy anything,” The voice that shouted back was cheery, female, and clearly not at all bothered by the less than warm welcome. 

Annabelle found herself watching in amusement as the owner of the blonde hair carefully made her way through the artfully arranged shelves. She'd spent ages getting them just to her liking. Everything looked like it was going to fall over at any second, but was actually very structurally sound. It was cramped and gave the illusion of dampness and mold without being either. She was proud of the generally menacing air of the entire store front. A menacing air that was being completely ignored by blonde hair. Blonde hair with hot tea to-go cups Annabelle saw as the woman rounded the last stack of just-in-the-way hat boxes and smiled brightly as she finally caught sight of Annabelle.

“What part of we're closed don't you understand?” Annabelle strove to put as much contempt into her question as possible. Wouldn't due to have people thinking they were welcome in the shop. Her counter was raised up a foot taller than was generally comfortable for most people and Annabelle used the height to stare down at the woman.

Blonde hair returned the question and the stare with a delicately raised eyebrow and Annabelle was stuck with the feeling that she knew blonde hair from somewhere. It distracted her enough that she accepted the cup blonde hair passed over and took a sip without thinking. Blonde hair must have noticed Annabelle's surprised expression because she laughed, “Good right? Special house blend, made it myself.”

Annabelle had been at this long enough to know when someone wasn't going to leave the shop so she gave in and leaned back in her chair. She didn't get the impression that blonde hair was going to buy anything, but she certainly wasn't leaving. “House blend?”

“Blossoming Flower Tea Shop next door,” Blonde hair said as she stuck out her hand. “Chelsea Parker I own the shop. I was surprised to see you here when I opened this morning. I have no idea how you got this all in overnight.”

Annabelle tried to give the impression that she knew what shops were on the street with her and sipped her tea. She hadn't yet actually left the shop to see where she was beyond a general idea of being in London. It was the first time she'd been back to London since she ran away and she wasn't sure she was ready for it. The tea though was really good and she'd have to make a point of running next door as long as she was in the location. “I'll have to stop in.”

Chelsea stared at her for a second then smiled as she recognized that Annabelle wasn't going to give any information on how her shop moved in so quickly. Chelsea looked out over the store, “Keep your secrets. I'll be honest I had no idea this space was here. I didn't think there was anything between my place and Press Me, that's the Dry Cleaners on the other side.”

Annabelle tried not to grimace. It was always awkward when her door showed up between two other shops. Sooner or later someone was going to put it together that there was no space between Blossoming Flower and Press Me. Much better to have her door on a blank wall of a building that people could convince themselves had hidden space for another shop. Annabelle sipped her tea and set about changing the subject. She attempted to pull a smile out of somewhere, she never did have the most convincing of smiles, always too nervous to seem genuine, “I'm sorry, but you seem terribly familiar and I can't seem to place you.”

Chelsea smirked but let Annabelle change the subject, although there was a hint of confusion in her eyes that Annabelle took to be over why. Chelsea sipped her own tea and cleared off a stool that Annabelle had very much not offered her. She spoke as she sat down now able to look Annabelle in the eye instead of craning her neck up, “I was on a season of Project Catwalk some years ago.”

“No, I've never watched that.” Annabelle frowned as she dismissed the idea. TV shows seemed to be the right tract. Something about seeing Chelsea on a TV screen felt right. With a sigh she gave in to Chelsea staying and moved the books and other junk around on the counter top so they could both see each other while sitting. Then with another sigh that she hoped conveyed how much of an inconvenience she found the entire endeavor to be she leaned down to grab her tin of biscuits.

It was while she was leaning down that it came to her. She never would've found the shop without that stupid trivia show, “You were on School Challenge. You beat Cheltenham Ladies' College with the tie breaker final question.”

Finally she got a look of surprise from Chelsea, “School Challenge? No one remembers me from that.”

“It was a life changing experience,” Annabelle said with a laugh as she put the biscuit tin down. Sitting in the hospital, broken leg elevated, watching TV and desperately hoping that the silly school she'd never heard of would win the trivia contest. Somehow watching them win had given Annabelle the courage to run off once her leg was healed, her father's assurances that it was just a school girl prank still ringing in her ears.

Somehow one day of tea and biscuits turned into two, then three, then most days. Chelsea had a wicked sense of humor and the kind of bright confidence Annabelle had always striven to achieve. Instead she got by on cheerful rudeness and the knowledge that she wasn't supposed to help people. Annabelle was also almost positive that Chelsea had figured out that there was no way Annabelle's shop should fit into the space it occupied and just decided not to say anything. It was nice having a normal friend for a change. 

It's two weeks on the first time the shop is open. The sign had read OPEN pretty as it pleased when she got back from her morning run to Blossoming Flower with a tea and scone. She'd scowled at the sign, but refrained from yelling fuck off at anyone that walked through her door that day. Part of the arrangement was actually selling things. Magical items didn't want to be hidden away from the world, they allowed themselves to be stored. 

Her artful arrangement of items had successfully driven off a half dozen people and her pretense of not speaking English had got rid of another three, but she'd been forced to make five sales to random people. She knew she had to make the sales, but it didn't make things easier. Sure some things would turn out fine. Others would end in disaster. Much better to do private sales with people who knew what they were getting into.

She'd just sent off the last person, jewelry box and written return policy (WE DON'T DO NO FUCKING RETURNS!) in hand when Chelsea pushed through the door. There was a pause before she called out, “Annabelle? Is everything okay?”

Annabelle waved a hand up to be seen over the stacks before calling out wearily, “Check the sign. Today we are fucking open.”

“I'm not sure how I feel,” Chelsea said as she made her way to the counter. “My entire day is thrown out of wack. Where's my fuck off?”

Annabelle snorted as Chelsea finally rounded the last shelf, “You're day is thrown? I have to deal with customers.”

Chelsea laughed like it was a joke. Annabelle wasn't sure she liked the look in the Chelsea's eyes as she looked around the shop, stopping to really look at some of the items for the first time. Finally she turned to look at Annabelle and smiled, “Tell me, if I were to buy something and try to return it in a week or so would your shop still be here?”

Annabelle's breath caught and she took the cup from Chelsea's hand. “I'm not selling you shit.”

Chelsea wasn't going to let her get away with redirects today, “How about that girl I passed on the way in. She decides she wants to make a return you're shop going to be here?”

Annabelle almost pointed at her posted return policy on the wall, but Chelsea's gaze had her dropping her hand, “I'm not planning on moving anytime soon.”

“There's no shop space between my place and Press Me is there?” Chelsea sips her own tea and waits patiently for Annabelle to answer.

“No, no there isn't.” Annabelle said before sighing and pulling out her biscuit tin. It was time to come clean and see how that went, “The door connects to London. Well, London and Seattle and Beijing and other places on occasion.”

Chelsea stared at her and they sipped their tea. Annabelle could honestly say that she had no idea what flavor Chelsea had brought her. Finally Chelsea put her cup down, “My school is having a bit of a get together this weekend. Do you want to come?”

Annabelle opened and closed her mouth a few times before smiling, “I'd love to.”


End file.
